May I Have This Dance?
by DarkAngelOfSorrowReturns
Summary: It was a dance she stopped before the final beat, but he was back so it wouldn't stop again. Soulmate!AU, Canon Divergence. Secret Santa fic for Lexi. Happy Holidays :D


Note: Soulmate!AU, Canon Divergence

* * *

Lily didn't want to be here; she nearly hated when this time of the year arrived. She wanted to curl in her bedroom with a tub of ice cream and watch soap operas on the telly. At least she could scream at the actors on screen and cry to her heart's content. Anything would be better than attending this ceremony.

She stared at herself in the mirror, blinking quickly as to not ruin her makeup. Going about things the Muggle way was beginning to become a huge regret for her. Rose insisted that it was pretty and that it brought out her eyes.

That was the last thing that Lily should have agreed to. Looking at her own eyes in the mirror, she saw her mum's eyes. Her mother that was being honoured at this very ceremony; a ceremony that was celebrated every year for prevailing in the war.

Her mum didn't prevail much long after that did she? Lily lost her mum to the effects of a nasty hex sent her way by Antonin Dolohov. According to her father, Dolohov fired the same one at Aunt Hermione two years prior to the war. Whatever he didn't succeed with her succeeded with Lily's mum.

It honestly made her bitter for a few months, but no one paid Lily too much mind. After all, who would believe that a twelve-year-old, of Weasley blood at that, held bitter and contempt for another family member? Yeah, they were there for her to grieve as she had started her Second Year at Hogwarts, but no one understood.

Until the tattoo suddenly appeared on the underside of her wrist, something in the world of magic even she thought was a myth. _SHM_. Only one bloke she knew had those initials.

And he changed her life forever.

Lily shook out of her thoughts, feeling the tears start to sting in her eyes. Her mother's death was a decade ago; she did _not_ want to reapply her makeup after how long it took her and Rose to get it right. She had to be strong. For her dad, her family, and especially her mum. It was a night for celebrating and honouring what was lost and gained since that fateful day at Hogwarts; she had to remember that and forget everything else that wanted to hurt.

Merlin, it was much better to run away now while she had the chance, even if it was a hit at her Gryffindor Pride. Taking a deep breath and setting her chin up high, Lily took a final glance at the mirror, smoothed out her black gown, grabbed her masque on the counter, and left the lavatory without another glance.

She took in the grotesque and gothic architecture of the building, the pale rose and black paint that lined with gold from the paintings displayed. Dominique and the rest of the planning team had really outdone themselves with the venue and theme this year. Masquerade was definitely a catching look for the Daily Prophet.

Her heels clicked against the marble floor as she descended the stairs for the ballroom. Thus far, she hadn't seen any familiar faces in the corridor or the staircase, so Lily assumed everyone was inside already. That was good because that meant she could skip the idle chatter until she had a glass of bubbly in her hand. That was also bad because when she opened the doors, more heads would turn in her direction than she'd like.

Just as Lily thought, when she entered the ballroom, she couldn't take in the decor because many heads turned to her. There was no doubting the blush that rushed to her cheeks as she cleared her throat and walked further inside.

"There's music playing for a reason," came her cousin's voice to the rescue. "You lot could be occupied with that!"

Dominique made her way through the crowd, shooing the onlookers away with her hands until she reached Lily. If it weren't her commanding voice, her beauty would have served as a good distraction for Lily. She'd be a little envious if she weren't grateful.

Lily reached out for Dominique, her hands grasping Dominique's elbows as they exchanged air kisses.

"You look brilliant, Dom," Lily said, admiring the blonde's fitted form in the strapless emerald green, mesh gown.

Dominique did a little pose, bouncing her hair. "That's a well-known fact, darling," she said with a laugh. "You look absolutely stunning."

Lily glanced down, releasing Dominique with a head shake. "Flattery will get you nowhere," the redhead replied.

Dominique glanced down at Lily's exposed wrist, her finger tracing the initials. "He's here, you know."

Those four words made Lily stiffen. Not once had he ever tried showing his face at one of the ceremonies over the years. Each time she didn't see him emerge from the shadows of the venue made Lily's experience a little more tolerable yet it opened the hole more in her heart all the same. Now he wanted to show his face?

Lily scanned the crowd for the distinguishable blonde hair quickly but to no avail. She did catch Dominique's sad but amused expression.

"It's a masquerade event, Lils," she reminded her.

Lily cursed, somehow forgetting the masque she sported on her face. Perhaps it was because Dominique displayed all of her features without one.

"How do you know he's here?" Lily asked.

"We had a conversation, obviously," Dominique answered.

Lily sighed. So much for a more tolerable experience. Despite the sporadic beating of her heart, Lily did not want to see him. Soulmates be damned. It was his fault it was like this, so she had no need to feel guilty.

Using her breathing technique from the lavatory, Lily calmed down enough to continue with the conversation. "What's he wearing?"

Dominique eyed Lily for a moment, no doubt assessing the best way to respond to the witch. "The typical dashing suit and bowtie," the blonde said. "His hair is coloured differently. For the occasion surely, but you can't miss those eyes."

She continued on with her description, not once mentioning the masque he would be wearing, and Lily was going to stop Dom and point it out to her. Except in the corner of her eye, Lily caught a dark-haired man staring at her, a single rose held between two of his fingers. A soft, sly grin was seen underneath the masque that covered his eyes, but it was those striking grey-green eyes that gave him away.

 _SHM_.

Her breathing hitched before she realized. "Scorpius."

Dominique looked behind her to find the man Lily was staring at and pointed at him with her thumb. "Is this going to be a thing again? I hated when you two just popped up around one another in school."

Lily responded with a small glare, causing Dominique to raise her hands in surrender.

"I'm going to tend to the other guests and make sure I keep Fred and the twins away from the refreshments," Dominique said. "Just...just don't run again." The blonde walked away, leaving Lily to fend for herself with Scorpius.

' _Traitor_ ,' Lily thought to herself. She did not run from Scorpius; it was the other way around. Staring him in the eye only cemented that fact in her mind.

His steps coming towards her were slow, or at least Lily thought they were. There was some kind of sensuality in his walk that only Scorpius could possess; she couldn't move away. He licked his lips and kept moving in her direction, and each step taken caused memories to flash in her mind.

 _She gasped, looking at the tattoo with her initials on it. "But...you're friends with my brother," Lily said._

 _Scorpius gave her a look she couldn't identify at the time and brought his wrist back to his side. "I'll be your friend too."_

After some time, Lily figured out that look was one he gave when he was being honest. It wasn't a look she saw given to many people other than herself, Albus, and their friend. He used it when he comforted her in her Second Year. He used it when he declared his feelings would never change in her Third Year. The day things fell apart, Lily didn't see that look.

 _In her Fourth Year, Scorpius took Lily to the Yuletide Ball. He bowed playfully with a hand out for her to take. "May I have this dance, Miss Potter?"_

 _Lily laughed, taking his hand. "You may."_

He was less than a foot away from her now, and he offered the rose. "May I have this dance, Miss Potter?"

It was then that Lily was aware of the classical music playing around them. She hated she hadn't grabbed anything to drink when Dom was there; now she'd have to endure this completely sober.

Though the question remained whether she would accept the dance or not. She'd done so in the past, so it shouldn't be so bad now, right? _Wrong_.

"You may," Lily said softly, taking the rose he'd offered. Everything in her mind was screaming at her to decline and walk away, but her body and heart told her 'don't you dare'. Soon enough, Lily's body was against Scorpius' thanks to him wrapping his arm around her waist. Her breath hitched again as their eyes connected once more, and their bodies automatically went with the music.

"Beautiful," Scorpius said, his eyes never leaving her face.

The statement brought her back to reality for a moment. "Why are you here?" Lily questioned.

There was a sigh. "I'd been avoiding this every year because of my father," he said. "I looked at the guilt that eats away at him because of his contribution to the war, and I couldn't be the face that everyone looked at with scorn because of it."

"Cowardice isn't a flattering trait," Lily quipped.

"You're one to talk, Lils," Scorpius retorted. "What happened the night before my graduation, huh?"

Lily looked down, the question smacking her like a huge gust of wind.

" _Why are you listening to others?" he demanded. "Your brother and I have gotten on just fine since he's in the same bloody House as I am! What does it matter if we're together? We're soulmates, and I dare anyone say otherwise."_

 _Lily shook her head. "It's not that simple anymore, Scorpius! You can't just ask for my hand while I'm still in school!"_

" _It's not like a betrothal," Scorpius replied. "And we don't have to get married right away. I just want you to be mine completely."_

 _Her eyes snapped in his direction. "That's what this is about is it? You want to take my virginity and be done with it?"_

 _The look on his face was hurt if not insulted. "How could you think that?"_

 _She stubbornly folded her arms, the whispers and talks of the other students plaguing her mind. "Maybe."_

 _His expression hardened. "I guess if that's what you really think of me, then we should just end this now."_

 _Lily should have fought more. She shouldn't have listened to the wrong people. "We should."_

 _If she ever wanted to see what a heartbreak looked like, she saw it in his eyes; but she didn't see that look where he was being honest with himself when he uttered the next words._

" _We're done."_

She cried herself to sleep that night, but she had too much pride to tell anyone what was said or to try and patch things up. It was pretty obvious that something happened when Scorpius graduated and they didn't speak to one another when he was around with Albus. She'd even used her grievances for her mother to grieve the relationship she lost.

In her mind, she blamed him and said it was his fault. The truth, it was her fault for listening to people outside of their relationship. It shouldn't have mattered to her, but she was young and stubborn, how could it not?

Hell, Lily was still stubborn. "I wasn't ready for that, why couldn't you understand? And that doesn't answer the question."

He made a harsh snort, stopping with the music and staring at her intently. His hand was pressed on the small of her back, and his breathing was heavy.

"Like I said then, I only wanted you to be mine completely. This tattoo on my wrist only proves that you're right for me. Claiming you as my wife some time in the future proves that I needn't worry that you'd choose someone else. To answer your question, I'm here for you, like I should have been from the beginning."

Damn him. He still knew what to say, even if slapping him would be easier. Her heart bled for him, her body cried for him. Her mind hated her right then.

"I…" she couldn't find the words. "Why did you change your hair color?"

In spite of things, it made Scorpius laugh at the sudden change. "It's the masque," he answered, taking one of his hands to remove it. Once it was away from his eyes, his platinum blonde strands were the way they always were.

"Magic never ceases to amaze me," she murmured, shaking her head. It was a tiny moment she needed to get her head together. "I am sorry for what I did."

"I shouldn't have rushed it," Scorpius replied. "But I'm not apologizing for it because I knew what I wanted then. My feelings never changed. Not even in a decade."

His words sent her over the edge. She couldn't hear the music anymore; Lily only heard Scorpius. She couldn't see the people around them; Lily only saw Scorpius. He was slowing to a stop, and Lily brought her hand to his cheek. His initials were seen proudly on her wrist in its position.

There was no more running. No more hiding behind her sorrows.

"The dance will be over soon," she told him, even though she didn't really know that.

Scorpius shook his head, giving her that look that proved he was telling the truth. A look she would never get over. "It'll never be over, Lily Luna," he said, his lips centimeters from hers. "Our dance is forever."

Nothing mattered after that because she closed the distance between their lips. As her eyes fluttered to a close, the only thought that came to mind was that she was thankful for the initials on her wrist.


End file.
